The Birth of Asian Conference on Remote Sensing (ACRS)
by Professor Shunji Murai, General Secretary, Asian Association on Remote Sensing

List of ACRS Founders

It is still in my fresh memory as I go back to the year of 1980, when several Asian scientists decided to start the first ACRS in an Asian style party in my hotel room in San Jose, Costa Rica.

In late 1970's, ERIM Symposium was the most famous one where most advanced remote sensing technologies were demonstrated by leading remote sensing specialists. Therefore, many Asian remote sensing scientists gathered at the first ERIM Symposium held in Asia, that was Manila ERIM Symposium in 1978.

The ext ERIM Symposium outside USA was planned in San Jose, Costa Rica, in April 1980. I decided to participate in the symposium with my assistants: Mr. Tohru Shinoda, Mr. Ryuji Matsuoka, Mr. Tsutomu Okuda and Ms. Kazuko Kobori in order to present our research results obtained at the Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo.

When we arrived in Mexico City Airport via Los Angeles from Tokyo, I met two groups; China Main Land group of Prof. Yong Shi-ren, Prof. Chen Qi-chen, and China Taipei group of Mr. Liao, Prof. A.J. Chen, Prof. Jrao etc.

At that time, two parties did not know each other, even did not want to talk to each other, because China was just opening and Chinese people were isolated from the international community. As I knew the two groups, I tried to have the two groups shake hands, because Mexico City is so far enough to forget the political issues. Very luckily they understood my idea and shook hands with each other. Soon after, they started to talk to each other in Chinese.

When the check in time came, I gave way politely to China Mainland and China Taipei group to let them board first. But when Japanese group tried to board, we were refused to get in! The airline staff told us that there were no more seats available for us. My words to see the Chinese groups later in the aircraft did not materialise We had to wait for five hours to catch other airline as there was no direct flight from Mexico City to San Jose, but via San Salvador.

When the Japanese group arrived in San Jose after taking a total of 38 hours journey from Tokyo, we were completely exhausted with the jet lag of 8 hours. We were shocked again with a Spanish word "Asta Manana" at a hotel that we made reservation. The hotel reception told us that there were no more hotel rooms available for us except a big deluxe suite room which the five Japanese could share. I had no choice to check in this big suite with two bedrooms and a living room because we had no energy to look for other hotel. But this choice was one of the contributions to the birth of ACRS, because I did use the living room for a party with Asian friends.

During the Costa Rica ERIM Symposium, I met other Asian friends; Mr. Manu Omakupt and Mr. Boonchana from Thailand, Mr. Christy Nanayakkara from Sri Lanka for example.

We Japanese group decided to invite those Asian friends from China, China Taipei, Thailand and Sri Lanka to a party to be held in the deluxe suite of my hotel on Sunday. I prepared many bottles of drinks and Yakitori (Chicken barbecue) from a Japanese Restaurant for this party. I moved sofas and tables out of the living room and prepared just vacant room with carpet on the floor. Nineteen Asian friends sat on the floor in Oriental style and started to enjoy drinking and eating.


As the host, Japanese people sang a song in Japanese way, very pleasantly other Asian friends from China, Thailand and Sri Lanka exchanged singing, dancing and joking. It was a very joyful party. As Costa Rica was so far from Asia and this made we Asian people feel more close in a group.

Almost at the end of the party, Manu started to talk; "Why we Asian people have to come to San Jose, such a very far place from Asia, by spending money on expensive air tickets? This is because there is no Asian conference that we Asian people organise by ourselves." Then we started to think and discuss about this issue.

Finally, Manu said to me, "It is because the Japanese never look at Asia but only at Europe and America. How do you think about this fact?"

Honestly, I did not expect such sudden question after enjoying the party. But my answer to the Asian friends was, "I understand that Japanese should contribute to organise our own conference to be held in Asia. But please tell me how we can organise such a conference in a right way."

After hot discussions among us, the following decisions were made:
(1) The first conference should be organized in an Asian country within 1980. Otherwise everybody will forget about the discussion.
(2) The venue should not be Japan but a developing country in Asia. It is because Japan is too expensive. In addition Japanese people should come and visit Asia and understand and learn Asian culture.
(3) The conference should be organized once a year.
(4) The conference should not be Western style but Asian style.
(5) The co-ordinator responsible for the first conference should be Shunji Murai, because Japanese should contribute to Asian people as a secretariat.


Manu proposed Bangkok as the venue of the first conference, and everybody supported him to negotiate with the Thai Government to accept this proposal.


I wanted to sleep well after the party, but I could not sleep in the night, because my brain was occupied with many things like how I could organise the first Asian Conference on Remote Sensing in Bangkok in the same year of 1980. There was only eight months left.

After I went back to Japan, I had to prepare "Call for Papers", but I did not know who should be Chairman of Organizing Committee, where should be the conference venue and what exactly should be the conference dates. Through Manu's suggestion, I succeeded to contact Mr. Suvit Vibulsresth, who was then the Director of Remote Sensing Division, National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT).


Suvit kindly accepted to help me to organize the first ACRS to be held at the Conference Room of NRCT in November, 1980.

It was a surprise and shock even for me that I had no mailing list of Asian remote sensing scientists and organizations. I tried to communicate with as many Asian scientists as possible, but most of them answered me that they had no fund to attend the conference. I thought that two big countries, China and India, should participate in the conference. I flew to China to negotiate with the Chinese Government to support this conference. But I did not know who was the key person in China. A visit to the Chinese Academy of Science did not help. After many trials, I was suggested to visit the Third Bureau of State Science and Technology Commission of China (SSTCC) for the negotiation. Because I had no time as well as the poor telephone service at that time, I went to the Bureau without appointment. Luckily I met with a gentlemen, whose name is Mr. Chen Wei-jiang, the Head of the Bureau. I explained him why and how Asian remote sensing scientists should organise the ACRS and requested the Chinese support. At first Mr. Chen was astonished with my sudden talk without any pre-negotiation as usual in China. He seemed impressed with my talk, then told me, "Please come again tomorrow, I will answer you the Chinese thought."

When I visited Mr.Chen the next day, he prepared a paper with the name of eight Chinese delegates and the tittle of seven technical papers to be presented to the first ACRS. In addition, he mentioned that China had decided to support the ACRS not only by sending the delegates but also by hosting the second ACRS in 1981.

Very fortunately I could visit India for my other business when I also contacted the Director of Space Application Center, Indian Space Research Organization in Ahmedabad. Professor Vabsar, the Director promised me to participate in the first conference.


I started to explain Japanese Government agencies, such as Science and Technology Agency, National Space Development Agency (NASDA) and Remote Sensing Technology Center (RESTEC) about the importance of the ACRS. But no agency supported my idea at that time. They asked me, "What is the benefit of such Asian conference to Japan? It would be stupid for Japanese to support such low quality conference."

Very fortunately Japan Association of Remote Sensing (JARS) a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) decided to support all necessary expenses as well as to encourage Japanese remote sensing scientists to participate in the first conference.

After I had finished mailing "Call for Papers", a serious problem occurred. I received an international call from Suvit who told me that Thai Government had not yet approved to host the conference. The final approval should be passed by the decision of National Remote Sensing Co-ordination Committee of which chairman was Dr. Sanga Sabasri, Secretary General of NRCT. I was requested to fly to Bangkok where I had to propose the official support of the Thai Government. Dr. Sanga told me that he could not say anything till the committee decided whether to support or to reject. I thought that everything would be smoothly accepted by NRCT through Suvit. But Suvit was not a decision-maker at that time. I was so much discouraged by the thought that my proposal was being rejected. But there was no way to give up. So I tried getting the support from the committee members.

I still remember, it was like yesterday, the day when the committee met and where I explained why ACRS is needed? How to organise the ACRS? What benefit and how Thai scientists will contribute to Asia etc.? Very luckily Manu and Boonchana were the members of the committee who supported me. But some members asked me seriously why a Japanese was organizing the conference. After the discussion, I was asked to wait for the final decision outside of the room. One may not realise how long the waiting to me. Dr. Sanga then invited me to come in the room, then announced that the committee has approved to host the ACRS. I was so excited with the decision that I shook hands with all committee members.

The first ACRS was held with a great success with 159 participants, including Thai participants, from 12 countries and one international organisation.


All participants were invited to the welcome party which was hosted on board of the Oriental Queen, a deluxe and white boat owned by the Oriental Hotel of Bangkok, the best hotel in the World. After the dinner, Manu and Bunchana explained about the pleasant night in Costa Rica and encouraged the participants to grow friendship through a Thai dance first. Many people from different countries followed this good idea by singing, dancing and joking. Such pleasant welcome party with peoples participation has become the tradition of the ACRS since that very first Conference. The spirit of the ACRS comes from the Asian culture.